Justice News

U.S. Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite, Jr. announced today that DWAYNE E. HUPP, age 51, a resident of Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, pled guilty before the U.S. District Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt, to four counts of bank robbery.

According to court documents, HUPP admitted that he robbed the Liberty Bank on August 6, 2013 and on September 10, 2013; and the Crescent Bank and Trust on September 4, 2013 and September 19, 2013. Documents filed in the matter reveal that the defendant was tackled by the security supervisor and the facilities manager as he exited the bank after the last robbery. HUPP was held until the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) arrived on the scene. HUPP was questioned shortly thereafter by the FBI and admitted to robbing all four banks. When shown surveillance photographs of the robbery suspect in each of the four robberies, HUPP identified himself as the person in those photographs. HUPP admitted that he was a heroin addict and would regularly travel from Bay St. Louis, Mississippi to New Orleans to obtain heroin. In order to support his habit, HUPP began to rob local banks.

The maximum penalty for bank robbery is twenty years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine. Any term of imprisonment must be followed by a term of supervised release of three years. HUPP may face a maximum of life imprisonment as a result of his two prior convictions for armed robbery in Jefferson Parish. Sentencing is scheduled for November 5, 2014 at 9:00 am.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with the invaluable assistance of New Orleans Police Department. Assistant United States Attorneys Mark A. Miller and Michael M. Simpson are prosecuting the case.

If you believe you have been a victim of fraud from a person or an organization soliciting relief funds on behalf of storm victims or have knowledge of waste, abuse, or allegations of mismanagement involving disaster relief operations, contact the National Center for Disaster Fraud toll free at: (866) 720-5721. You can also fax information to: (225) 334-4707 or e-mail it to: disaster@leo.gov

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